The nonprofit group listed 88 downtown investment projects since 2000 that have either been completed, are under way or for which a firm commitment has been made.

The combined capital investment value is $1.23 billion, topped by the $106 million spent on Wake Forest BioTech Place and the $100 million commitment by Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center toward a major medical education facility. Both buildings are in Wake Forest Innovation Quarter.

Meanwhile over in Greensboro the entity charged with leading its downtown revitalization, Downtown Greensboro Inc, is going through a transitional phase and is looking for a new leader. That’s important because there are several projects in the works that will alter downtown Greensboro significantly over the next few years and it’s essential that there be someone at the wheel who can bring together the various constituencies – city government, elected leaders, industry, educational institutions, etc. – and provide a strategic direction for downtown redevelopment. If Greensboro can manage to bring some strategic direction to the downtown then we’re sure to see even more apartments developed in the downtown area in addition to those like Greenway at Fisher Park, CityView and the Southeastern Building.

As for High Point, well they have a new mayor, lots of new city council members and a new city manager and one of their primary tasks is figuring out how, and where, to revitalize their city. With the furniture market they do have a unique challenge so it will be interesting to see how things evolve there.

These are indeed interesting and (finally) dynamic times in the Piedmont Triad.

Highland Crossing opened in 2013 and consists of 204 beds. It offers a study lounge and fitness center, as well as outdoor amenities that include a pavilion with an outdoor fireplace, grills and sundeck, mountain bike rentals, a nature trail and a hammock garden.

The Greensboro News & Record recently ran an article about BSC Holdings’ redevelopment of the Southeastern Building in downtown Greensboro. The company’s founder Barry Siegal and his daughter and PTAA board member Amanda Williams were interviewed for the story and gave readers a little insight into the long, winding road that the project has taken over the years:

Soon, it’ll be home to young professionals, law students and maybe even retirees living in the apartments on floors four through nine, as well as a restaurant and offices with a downtown view. But it’ll still carry some of that character of the 1920s.

Preserving that character is another factor that has made the project so challenging, according to Siegal. He could have redeveloped the building quicker and cheaper than he did.

But then the building’s future tenants wouldn’t get the large windows, open floor plans and those original brown doors that are being restored for the offices along the third floor. Siegal went to great pains to preserve those little details that tell the building’s history…

He said people have shown interest in the studio, one- and two-bedroom apartments. Williams said there are about 25 people on the waitlist for them. Rental rates will start at about $700 for the apartments, she said.

GREENSBORO, N.C. — The apartment vacancy rate in the Triad is the lowest it has been in a decade, according to a report released by a Charlotte research firm. In fact, the report shows demand for rental properties is so high that more than 93 percent of apartment units in the Triad are currently occupied.

The Greenway at Fisher Park apartments in downtown Greensboro has been particularly successful.

“Right now we’re 100 percent occupied, so we actually have a waitlist for the next year. We’re also in preparations for our second phase right now,” said Hannah Boyd, property manager at Greenway at Fisher Park.
Kerri Person, with Rent-A-Home of the Triad, says the same is true for all types of rental properties, like duplexes and houses.

“Our rent values have trickled up some. The key though I think to renting the property quickly is having it priced…

Kevin Phillips, managing partner of Phillips Management Company, has purchased the Chandler Concrete site on Mill St. between Battleground Ave and Westover Terrace in Greensboro (see map below). While plans for the site itself weren’t detailed there was an interesting twist that will benefit the Greensboro community at large. From the Triad Business Journal:

Prior to the sale, Thomas Chandler Jr., president of Chandler Concrete Co., signed the restrictive covenant which agrees to cease use of the rail line running behind the Mill Street property.

That agreement sets the stage for further development of both the Atlantic & Yadkin Greenway along Battleground Avenue and the 1-mile western leg of the Downtown Greenway, said Dabney Sanders, the Downtown Greenway project manager with Action Greensboro…

“We are now in the process of determining potential uses and development of this property,” Mill Street Commons LLC said in an emailed statement. “We are supportive of Greensboro’s continued economic growth and the expansion of its nationally renowned greenways and trail systems, and look forward to working with a wide range of city, county and community leaders as we explore ideas for this property.”

Bell Partners announced today that they, along with DRA Advisors LLC, have sold a portfolio of 20,439 apartments to Lone Star Advisors. From the Triad Business Journal story:

Bell Partners Inc. of Greensboro and DRA Advisors LLC together have sold a portfolio of 20,439 apartments to a global private equity firm for $1.8 billion, the firms announced today.

The portfolio comprises 64 properties across eight states and was acquired by Lone Star Funds, which has U.S. offices in Dallas, New York City and Washington, D.C. Bell will continue to manage the properties…

The deal includes 24 North Carolina properties located in Charlotte, Raleigh, Wilmington, New Bern and Goldsboro. The total portfolio was originally part of a joint venture purchase made by Bell and DRA in 2008, which then included 25,684 apartments spanning 86 properties.

This is one of the largest apartment deals in the country this year, and is likely to be the “biggest” story involving a Triad apartment company in years.